There is a space between ordinary thoughts – a still point not tainted by self-limiting beliefs or self-sabotaging habits – where pure possibility and potential exist.
And now for the part “The Secret” held back . . . go to
Read the latest and BEST accumulation of Jack Canfield’s advice and wisdom on The Law of Attraction, collaborating with “Photo Reading” author and founder of Learning Strategies, Paul Scheele.
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Your success in achieving your goals will be greatly enhanced by your coaches intentionally setting up a three branched support system. Your coach has you on a solid plane and being successful and achieving your goals when they include social support and structural support. Then you need to say YES to two questions.
Success is the achievement of something planned or attempted. Therefore to be successful, by definition, we have to be intentional. Otherwise when something good happens, we call it a fluke or just plain luck.
I tell my clients that they can plan their lives or they can just let it roll out haphazardly, allowing others to determine what happens. Either way, I tell them, YOU GET TO LIVE THERE!
Wouldn’t you rather plan on success and good stuff coming into your life rather than relying on flukes or luck? Most of us would! Coaching programs really increase the likelihood of that happening if your coach has the skills and practice to bring a very specific balance to each and every coaching session.
I’m talking at a high concept level about all types of coaching relationships: executive, leadership, life and even mentoring.
Your success in achieving your goals will be greatly enhanced by your coaches intentionally setting up a three branched support system. Very simply, people change their behavior and are set up for success if they can answer two questions with a “yes!” in each of three categories, personal, social and structural.
If I could give you a way of thinking that actually shows you how a great coach guides a successful man or woman to optimize the reality of really accomplishing their goals in the shortest number of sessions, would that would be of value to you?
Very simply, people change their behavior if they can answer two questions with a “yes!” The first question is “Is this worth it?”, and the second question is simply “Do I have the ability to it?”
I tell my clients that success comes from a goal system like a three legged stool. You all know that metaphor - 3 points to make a plane, 3 legs on a stool to be stable. If one leg gets weak, you still have the other two to help balance you.
The first leg of the stool is personal, or inside you. And I think this is the foundational leg. Without this leg, no goal you want to achieve is going to be accomplished. Or if it is accomplished, it won’t be sustained. And sustaining the successful behavior is what it’s all about. So the mindset question here is, “do I think the work and effort to achieve this new successful behavior is worth it?”, and then, “do I really think I can do this?”
The second leg that supports the foundational leg is social, or in relationship with others. So the question here is “will my family and friends support me in this success” and “do I think my current social support is sufficient?” If the answer is no, don’t stop there. It’s your responsibility to succeed, not theirs! So, who could you enlist to support you and hold you accountable? Of course, your life coach is one of these people, but you also do even better with support from friends and family. This is going to be different people for different areas, depending on what their strengths are. One friend might be the social support to achieve your ideal weight, and it may be your spouse that is the support for your financial goal or to help you get that promotion you so badly want. With the help of your coach, make sure that you have identified the right social support.
The third leg your coach should ensure is the structural leg, or the organization, or the actual physical properties in your environment. The questions here are “Do I have all the exercise equipment at home that I need, or will I join a gym? If so, which gym, how far am I willing to drive or bus to that, and at what membership cost?” Or, do I need to hire a bookkeeper, CPA, get software for my computer? What do I need in my structure to support me being successful in attaining my goal? And then, Can I really do this? Can I learn QuickBooks; learn to use the Bowflex, etc? Can I put aside the budget to get this in my structure? In business you will need to evaluate the corporate culture and past precedence.
That’s it. Picture a 3 legged stool. Your coach has you on a solid plane - being successful and achieving your goal. The main leg is labeled personal with the questions do I want to (motivation), and can I (ability)?
The second leg is labeled social support. Do they want to (motivation), and can they (ability)?
The third leg is labeled structural. Are there systems in place to help me sustain my motivation, and which of these systems will do it for me?
I’d love to help you with the Coach Companion System. Please call or email with any questions.
To your success. Light the Fire!
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How Long Are You Willing to Tolerate Stress?
Do you know why the flight attendant on a plane tells you during the safety instructions to be sure to place the oxygen mask over your own face first, and then help others next to you? Because you only have 18 seconds of useful consciousness when you lose oxygen. Only 18 seconds before the physical and mental functioning deteriorates to the point where you can’t even take care of yourself! Let alone the person next to you.
The same thing applies to your physical and mental health. Are you operating on your “18 seconds of useful consciousness” all the while believing that you don’t really need to reach for that oxygen mask just yet, you’ve got a business to run!
The “18 seconds of useful consciousness” are what operating in too much stress is for you. You may still be operating, but the question is, for how long? We will have stress, that comes with the territory. But are you so far gone that you are ignoring your own built in early warning detection system? Not an oxygen mask dropping, but your body’s stress symptoms.
You know the signs of someone else’s stress when you hear them, difficulty sleeping, can’t concentrate or remember as much, irritable or anxious, headaches, stomach aches, muscle aches, over eating, over drinking, overwhelmed or worried. These are all signals of a “loss of cabin pressure” – and our bodies are asking us to grab the oxygen mask, tune up and de-stress.
Too many small business owners are operating in the danger zone. I have been guilty of thinking that I get a special dispensation from laws of the universe when it comes to how hard I can push myself. How about you? I assume most of us entrepreneurs and small business owners think we’re pretty tough and our passion for our business is so great we will endure just about anything to ensure its success. But ask yourself, are you experiencing some of these symptoms of low cabin pressure yourself, but ignoring them? Do you feel obligated to help your business before you take care of yourself?
Being dedicated to our business is a necessary trait to be successful, - but only to a point and only if you use that endurance and passion judiciously. Because if you are not first and foremost dedicated to the YOU that runs your business, you are not reaching your potential - - in your business or your life. In fact, you are headed for certain failure. I want you to be smart enough to know that you need to put the oxygen mask on yourself first, and then turn to help your business.
As for me, I only want the very sharpest person running my business. And that means my impulse to work as hard as I can to make sure my business succeeds, way beyond what I’d ever ask from anyone else, has to be balanced with taking care of me first, and knowing that as a person in charge, I need the oxygen first.
As someone that is dedicated and passionate about your business, you will be far better off if you apply that same priority of passion and dedication to YOU first, not your business. If you don’t passionately care for you first with the same enduring attention you give your business, then you have to wonder how good the person is that’s running your dream and your passion – your business, and if they can be there for the long haul.
I want you to start today by setting yourself up to win each and every day. Create a morning routine to make yourself strong first, physically and emotionally, thereby sensibly managing yourself before you even begin to think of managing your business.
Have you ever gotten up and started working right away in the morning in your home office? Checking emails, checking schedules, tracking statistics and numbers and sales. Breakfast comes much later, and exercise?? Well, that was a good intention. And you may not even get through the shower until just before your first appointment of the day. And later that night, much later, there you are, still churning out the work until midnight.
You think you are working very hard, and you are. But how effective are you when you push that hard? Steven Covey says “sharpen the saw”. All the physiology experts tell us our brains and bodies are more efficient with proper nutrition, sleep and exercise. So the next time you find yourself pushing that hard, ask yourself if you are really operating beyond the “18 seconds of useful oxygen” and setting yourself up to crash and burn. And it follows, if you crash and burn, you are setting up your small business to crash and burn too.
Get ready now to start to take care of yourself first, so that you can have the physical and mental functionality to run a business, to lead and to love others. If you really want a business that beats the odds of failure, then you must invest in yourself first with restful sleep, exercise, meditation and good nutrition every day. Ensure that you will start your business day feeling good and strong, motivated and inspired instead of tired, weak and pessimistic.
Make sure you’ve done your preflight check so that you can avoid those low cabin pressure times, and grow your business and help even more people. Set yourself up with your shortcut to success – and start your growing business every day with YOU!
Light The Fire!
I downloaded Dr. Sears’ PACE ebook today and read it in one sitting. I am always looking to use and pass on Shortcuts to Success. And I know that you will benefit from this one!
A while ago I wrote an article 6-S Steps to More Brain Power. In that article one of 6 steps to more brain power was to use interval training for a faster more effective workout.
Today I downloaded an ebook on Dr. Sears’ patented PACE program (Progressively Accelerating Cardiopulmonary Exertion) and read it in one sitting.
He explains that this is better than interval training. By adding the elements of progressing at an accelerated pace, with gradually increased intensity and shortened duration, he’s taken interval training to a whole new level.
You can use PACE to change both your metabolism and your anatomy for the better. This means less fat and more muscle.
It’s flexible because it’s not focused on what you do as much as the direction of your change over time.
Dr. Sears claims that PACE proves once-and-for-all that a great body and vibrant health does NOT have to be difficult, time consuming or boring. Yeah!!! Now you have a shortcut to success unleashing the killer body and disease-free life that we want for ourselves and our loved ones. He continues to say that this program enables you to avoid heart attacks, strokes, heart disease and reverse the effects of aging (I really like that part).
Everything in this ebook makes perfect sense to me and it’s written in plain English!!!! - - another one of my requirements to be included in a shortcut to success tip.
Click on this link to read about and order your own copy.
Then comment on the blog with me.
I’m starting tomorrow morning! Please pass this on to anyone that you think would benefit.
I enjoy writing and sharing valuable content for you. And from time to time I link you to the wisdom of some of my friends . . . I’ve always said that one of my best attributes is my friends. 
Today’s link is to David Farrar. He is a psychologist with an international practice as a consultant and professional speaker. His company, FGRAssociates, solves people issues for business owners and management teams. This link is on the importance of basic interpersonal skills as another Shortcut to Success. It goes along with the blog post I made earlier on Rapport.
http://farrarsfaucet.blogspot.com/2008/01/basic-interpersonal-skills.html
Enjoy his article,
Light the Fire!
Denise Pederson
Here is a great article link on body language from my local newspaper, The StarTribune. Click on the link to read the article.
http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/18507744.html?page=1&c=y
Body language and attire convey lots of information in the workplace, but “businesslike” behavior doesn’t necessarily come naturally to us.
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If you are like me, you want the maximum interest rate on a CD, the greatest appreciation on your real estate, and Bull Market returns on stock investments, right? I took the time to learn about and investigate different CD investment strategies on some money that I needed to have in a liquid investment. I read the real estate section of the paper every Saturday to see comps for my property to see if the value is going up or down. And I started a stock investment group with nine other brainy women to learn the ins and outs of the stock market.
But - - Money is really only a tiny part of my asset portfolio. My greatest asset is - - ME! My intelligence, personal skills, social skills, technical skills, mind set. Ask any millionaire, and they will tell you that if they went broke tomorrow, they would recreate their wealth with the traits that they currently carry within themselves.
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What is a life coach and why should you even care?
A personal life coach is someone that has thoroughly studied and understands how you do what you do, that makes you get (or not get) the results you want in life and in business.
A professional life coach has a huge resource of personal development systems and methods and ideas. This wealth of specialized skill and knowledge is used to train, direct and instruct you in ways that help you to achieve a goal or to develop some specific skill, such as feeling comfortable speaking in public, achieving a job promotion, achieving your ideal weight, balancing work and life in a busy family, or even helping you build up your self confidence and self image so that you are more comfortable and productive at home or at work.
